From Chef Ross:

For this last update I went over to Teymoor’s house so that we could prepare some of the items I have been suggesting, and to answer any culinary questions that he might have.

To address steaming and portable snacking, I gave Teymoor my favorite appliance;  My first countertop steamer. We made perfect eggs 2 ways. Soft boiled for breakfast and medium boiled for his portable snacking needs. The soft boiled eggs took 7 minutes and the medium eggs took 10 minutes.

Next we cooked an entire meal in the steamer: Salmon, asparagus, and boc choy. Prep time was three minutes and cook time was seven minutes. Teymoor was impressed by the speed and beauty of the finished meal. Total time: Ten minutes. Less time than it would take to order and receive a pre-cooked take out meal.

Teymoor had some questions about rich brown sauces that he enjoys while eating out and wanted to know if they could be duplicated at home. The answer is yes. However I suggested that we focus more on lighter methods of cooking to hit his goals. There is often a tremendous amount of fat in those delicious sauces and I feel that  dense caloric intake would best be reserved for the special occasions of eating out.

As a compromise however, I wanted to share  a favorite stir fry recipe given to me from a local Asian produce farmer that uses a brown sauce and Yu Choy,  remaining relatively healthy. Stir Fry is a method of cooking at high heat that can be delicious, wholesome, and quick.

Editor’s Note: Another countertop option that combines the power of conduction, convection and infrared cooking is theNuWave Oven. It cooks foods—from vegetables to meats and desserts–thoroughly and quickly).

Here it is: (see next page for the Yu Choy and Beef recipe)

Yu Choy and Beef 

Courtesy May Thao
Thao Farm, CA

Market List:

• 2 bunches Yu Choy (Chow Sum) each bunch sliced into thirds
• ¼ cup oyster sauce
• 1 lb. thinly sliced beef
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 2 tsp fish sauce

1. Place WOK on a high heat burner,  as soon as your wok begins to smoke add oil. Wait 1 minute and add garlic and saute until golden brown.

2. Add beef, stir often cooking until medium.

3. Add Yu Choy, then add the oyster sauce, and the fish sauce. and cover for up to three minutes, until the greens are at your desired doneness  (we like them bright green with the stems barely soft).

4. Add a little pepper if and a touch of sesame oil to taste.

5. Serve hot with  steamed brown rice to round out your meal.

Lastly, we cooked the quinoa recipe from our last update. We cooked the quinoa for about 15 minutes in the steamer and it was perfectly cooked –light and full of texture. We added cucumbers, our own homemade ponzu sauce, sheep feta, baby Arugula, yellow bell peppers, olive oil, fresh lime juice, and avocados. It was absolutely amazing!

In closing Teymoor enthusiasm for cooking has skyrocketed. He is cooking more at home, and has new skills and knowledge to make the choices necessary for stabilizing his glucose levels at work, and making quick meals at home that are nutrient rich and satisfying for his whole body.

It has been fun to share my knowledge and enthusiasm for shopping, and preparing irresistible food to aid in developing a healthy edible relationship.  Best of continued luck Teymoor!

I am always available to answer questions or help any reader to finesse their edible relationship.

Thanks Family Eats!

Chef Ross

email: ross.rosenzweig@gmail.com

VittlesInc.

510.282.0957

http://twitter.com/vittlesinc

The post The Family Eats Challenge: Teymoor – The Final Installment appeared first on Family Eats.

This is part of our yearlong Family Eats Challenge series. Throughout the year, we’ll take a journey with four families as they strive to change their relationship with the food they eat. For this Challenge, we visit with Teymoor, a single male, living in San Francisco. Helping Teymoor with the Challenge is Chef Ross Rosenzweig, the Culinary Coach for Berkeley-based VittlesInc.

When we last left Chef Ross and Teymoor, it was time for Teymoor to heed Chef Ross’ advice on how to create some healthy snacks to take to work. Chef Ross provided a variety of recipes, including Asian Cabbage Wraps, California Rolls, Teriyaki Chicken Temaki, Beer Braised Turkey Tacos with Mango Tomato Salsa, and a Pineapple Mango Salsa All were relatively easy to prepare, but they did take a bit of pre-planning.

Here is what Teymoor had to say:

All the recipes Chef Ross provided me looked pretty easy to make, but I choose the Teriyaki Chicken Temaki Hand Rolls to start off with. For the most part, the ingredients needed were typical ones I have, such as soy sauce, chicken and rice. The English cucumbers weren’t something I usually buy and I was unable to find the Shirakiki Unagi sauce at our local store.

As for the teriyaki sauce, I don’t use it, and therefore didn’t have any at home, so instead I made up a sauce as a substitute for the teriyaki, which included sesame oil, light soy and sugar.

Because pre-wrapping the hand rolls makes the seaweed soggy, I found that packing the filling and wrapping them at work is best. I packed the ingredients in plastic containers to transport them to work. Once there, I found the wraps were relatively easy to assemble at snack time, especially since I had all the ingredients ready and waiting to go. There was no hassle in storing, assembling or eating. The rolls were very filling and quite tasty.

As usual, Ross has great ideas and tips. The Challenge is definitely helping me, and serving as a great catalyst to get me cooking.

Chef Ross’ next Task for Teymoor: Quinoa

Teymoor asked me if he could learn how to make the ubiquitous quinoa. So I developed this recipe for him that shows how versatile it is just by changing an ingredient or two.

Quinoa is a complete protein, offering essential amino acids. It is a perfect substitute for rice, adding variety to a meal. What is also great about quinoa is that it has more than twice the amount of protein found in rice. And, because it is easy to digest, this is a very agreeable grain.

This salad is a sure fire hit. It is even better the next day.

Quinoa Salad With Baked Breaded Chicken

Rinse your quinoa, then steam or cook the quinoa covered on your cooktop for about 15 minutes. It is done when it is soft enough to eat, but still has a firm texture.

For the quinoa, I used red quinoa. Color doesn’t matter regarding flavor but I do like the contrast of the red in this dish. I also steamed the golden beets but roasting is just fine.

I used a frozen pre-breaded chicken product that is quite tasty, but you can use your favorite breaded chicken recipe, if desired.

To make the dressing, start with a 3 second pour of red wine vinegar, and a 5 second pour of blood orange olive oil, and a 3 second pour of Ponzu sauce to taste (see ingredients notes below).

I like to start my dressing here, taste it, then adjust. It should be perky, but shouldn’t make you pucker. The feta you will add later will help to further make this salad irresistible.

To vary the dish, there are a variety of mix-ins that can be used: lemon thyme (one of my current favorites to play with), sheep feta, and wild baby arugula. Although not in these pictures, avocado and cucumber provide great textural contrast, too. Lemon thyme is the only mix-in that is a necessity in this recipe.

Ingredient Notes:

Ponzu sauce is a citrus-based sauce that has a sweet, sour, slightly salty flavor.

Lemon thyme looks like English thyme, but it smells and tastes like lemon.

Blood Orange Oil is a mixture of the juice from blood oranges with olive oil. Delicious in a vinaigrette, or on chicken and fish.

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by Chef Ross

In our last installment we talked about “smart snacking” and the need to provide the body with FAST and easy snacks. We want the hand to be able to reach out and grab something nutritious and balanced BEFORE the body begins to shut down because of low glycemic level. For this Update we are going to provide Teymoor with even more options for snacking—options we traditionally think of as a meal instead of a snack.

As we do this, we move from “smart snacks” to “hand food.” But before we do, I want to share a bit of our future with you.

In the next five years, our largest corporate food processors have predicted that for a new food item launch to become successful it has to meet the following criteria:

1) It needs to be prepared in less than 1 minute.

2) It has to have a pleasing taste profile.

3) It has to be eaten with one hand.

Notice that these criteria have nothing to do with nutritional value or balance. But don’t worry, we are going to change that!

For the sake of simplicity I have researched recipes from today’s current media so that anyone can learn and follow along.

In the next week, there are several items that I am going to instruct Teymoor how to make. Each will meet his need to have a fast and easy snack – that is nutritious. Meals will include Asian Cabbage Wraps, California Rolls, Teriyaki Chicken Temaki, Beer Braised Turkey Tacos withMango Tomato Salsa, and a Pineapple Mango Salsa. They are all relatively easy to prepare, but they do take a bit of pre-planning.

And, yes, they will take more than one minute to prepare, but the results will be so satisfying. As well, the initial prep time will take a little fun in the kitchen. Each of these items can be prepared well in advance, and in one day. Then they will hold the entire week.

When Teymoor is getting ready for his day, he just packs the wrap, the tasty filling, and the wet item (salsa) in separate containers or in a snazzy bento box and dashes to work. When his hand reaches out looking for calories, guess how much time he has to spend making his delectable meal that will make all his co-workers crazy with envy?

1 minute!

Why don’t you try a little of smart snacking, and get some great tasting meals in your hands.

The post Family Eats Challenge: Teymoor, Installment 3 – Hand Food appeared first on Family Eats.

In our first update, we learned a bit more about Teymoor and the goals he would like to accomplish. After meeting and shopping with Chef Ross, Teymoor was set loose to start changing his relationship with food.

Here is what Teymoor had to say:

Ross is full of energy and enthusiasm which made shopping an adventure. While at the store, he helped me drill down into the details of the food, touching on everything from flavor differences to actual nutritional differences.

Our main goal for this shopping adventure was to find good, healthy snacks that I can snack on through the day. We spent some time picking out a variety of foods that have been working out great for me. For instance, I’m really enjoying rice cakes with freshly ground peanut butter and thin slices of apple on top. It is so simple to make, and it fills me up. I have been making “smart snacks” almost every day now. I’m shopping for most of the same items, and I’m even expanding to new, similar items.

The visit also inspired me to create a delicious dinner. So I found a recipe for scallops online and made it. The scallops came from a farmers market near my house. I swapped out the breadcrumbs for crispy fried mushrooms because my friend who was eating with me loves mushrooms. It was a really great meal.

Going forward, I have a newfound love for the grocery store. There is so much to investigate and try, that it is almost overwhelming. I would like to take notes while I’m shopping, and to buy different brands of the same product to compare.

All in all, I am really looking forward to more input from Chef Ross.

During our initial meeting, Chef Ross went over so many things all as they related to my goals. Everything Chef Ross suggested seems reasonable to me, so I’m looking forward to getting into specific cooking projects. (Although, personally, separating egg whites and yolk sounds tricky though.

And as for Chef Ross, well here is his take on the snacking situation:

Deadlines, client meetings, presentations, and stress… all work in harmony to mount a campaign against the highly functioning body that we are striving for.

You might not know that this dialogue is secretly happening… but it is… Let’s listen in….

“Hey hand, “

“Yes, body?”

“Teymoor is really busy. He isn’t paying any attention to me.

I told the brain that I was hungry and the brain just sent me a note saying… Teymoor is unavailable… Please try again later.”

“So, uh…hand,”

“Yeah, body?”

“GO GET ME SOME FOOD NOW…or I’m turning off.”

The hand has no choice but to obey, after all the hand is part of the body. And, what does the hand grab?  Whatever is around. Fatty, salty, sweet, crunchy, anything that is immediate, and fast. And, lots of it. Since the body is starving and the brain is busy who is to notice? The belly notices!  It notices everything, and it grows.

For this week’s challenge Teymoor is going to continue on the pursuit of being able to reach out and find a variety of portable smart snacks waiting around to be picked  up and placed in his mouth.

What are smart snacks? Protein, complex carbohydrates, and lipids or fuel otherwise known as fats, in portable portions.

Ok, but what does that actually look like?  It looks like whole grain crackers with meat or cheese. Nut butters and fruit on rice crackers, trail mix and yogurt. Hard-boiled eggs and whole grain pretzels, whole grain pita with hummus.

The idea here is to combine and BALANCE the calorie intake. Not too much of one item, because excess is as unwanted as starvation.

For Teymoor, all these items are extremely easy to prepare and acquire at his local market or farmer’s market. When shopping locally these items might be more expensive than the chain supermarket, but since we are focused on taking care of the entire body as quickly and efficiently as possible, it is worth it. The price differential will not be more than a cocktail at your favorite bar. Why not treat the tongue and mouth to superior taste and texture. They are your body’s gatekeepers to satiety and satisfy.

The post Family Eats Challenge: Teymoor, Installment 2 appeared first on Family Eats.

This is part of our yearlong Family Eats Challenge series. Throughout the year, we’ll take a journey with four families as they strive to change their relationship with the food they eat.

Janet and Jim, our first Family Eats Challenge family, have completed their Challenge and have definitely found success. Thanks to Chef Miki of Melissa’s, they were able to expand their repertoire of meals they prepare, and have become inspired to try new foods and flavor combinations.

This week we start a new challenge with Teymoor, a single male, living in San Francisco, who finds himself more comfortable in restaurants then his own kitchen . Helping Teymoor with the Challenge is Chef Ross Rosenzweig, the Culinary Coach for Berkeley-based VittlesInc. In the coming weeks, we’ll hear from both Chef Ross and Teymoor on how they’re progressing with their challenge. This week, we’ll learn a bit about Teymoor and what he would like to accomplish during the challenge, as well as a bit about Chef Ross, who will re-introduce Teymoor to his food, his markets and his kitchen.

A Bit About Teymoor:

• Age: Mid 30s
• Home: Lives alone

 Family Eats: Food Adventurer? 

• Yes. I’ll try odd food more than once especially from different restaurants because I know how different the quality/flavor can be.

FE: Biggest challenges when it comes to food?

• Too busy to cook at home
• I wander around the grocery store, wondering what to buy
• I have the desire to create foods that I enjoy in restaurants at home
• I need to get back in the kitchen

FE: What would you like to accomplish during this Challenge?

• Learn to cook vegetables in new ways,
• Preparing meals for one (and dealing with leftovers) –
• In search of ideas for lunch
• Feel more comfortable shopping for food
• Would like to change my diet – eat less bread (carbs), and more proteins, along with vegetables.

FE: More Goals after Meeting with Chef Ross.

• Take my own Healthy and tasty snacks so that I can graze throughout the day!
• Increased energy at the end of my long work day
• Spend less money eating lunch out.
• Lose around 25 pounds.

Chef Ross’ Notes from Meeting 1:

Teymoor and I met together in his home and I got a handle on his cooking resources and kitchen. Teymoor had a new range, microwave, nice knives, an ample refrigerator and, one of my favorite appliances… a steamer! Perfect.  We’ve got the necessities to make some real change and hit Teymoor’s goals.

The first hurdle is to stabilize Teymoor’s blood sugar level with his own snacks instead of getting so in insanely hungry that his body begins to shut down causing all sorts of issues. (Lack of energy, grabbing food on go, slower metabolism. )

Teymoor has an amazing palate and is open to try new flavors and textures. He is also ready, willing and able to put forth a little prep time in his already busy schedule. This way, he has within arms reach the fuel his body demands within the confines of his work.

This is the foundation necessary to successfully hit his goals.

Action Plan Week One: 

Let’s find, the foods that he can prep the night before or even early in the week that are fast, simple, portable, and can be eaten with his hands while he is working.

After Shopping together at some of Teymoor’s favorite local markets we found some wonderful ideas that will take minimal effort to prep and be on the road.

1. Steamed Hard Boiled Eggs for breakfast on the go.
2. Locally made granola that have superfoods and protein. They provide that  crunch for a truly satisfying snack or breakfast.
3. Whole grain crackers instead of bread that will host meats, cheese, and  crunchy vegetables for lunch.
4. Fresh ground peanut butter on rice crackers with a sliced apple. (His new  favorite!)
5. Steamed crunchy vegetables for snacks.

Chef Ross Rosenzweig Bio: 

• When Ross was a little boy his love for playing in the kitchen resulted in a fire that almost burnt his parent’s house down. Ever since that historic day he has been taming the fire in others’ kitchens and learning about the magic that happens when you play with your food.

• For the past twenty years he has been a successful caterer, personal chef, and, most recently, chief culinary educator at BSC Culinary in San Francisco, CA. Whether he is picking organic heirloom peaches in the Central Valley of California, catching halibut off the coast in Alaska, or making educational videos at the Farmer’s Market, these explorations and exploits have taught Chef Ross the joys of simple whole food and the pleasure and charm of cooking for yourself and others.

• He is currently the founder of Berkeley-based Vittles Inc., an exciting new venture devoted to helping the culinary challenged become more able and adventurous cooks. As head Culinary Coach, his zeal for the Bay Area’s edible bounty and mentoring skills inspire his students to play and connect with their food, experiment with new ingredients, and ultimately feel at home in their own kitchen.

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